


Out of Time

by ClockworkDinosaur (orphan_account)



Category: Fallout 4
Genre: Angst and Romance, Domestic Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-27
Updated: 2016-05-28
Packaged: 2018-07-10 14:33:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6989146
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/ClockworkDinosaur
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Nate dies and leaves his son Shaun alone, Hancock realizes that he can't be a father by himself.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

When Hancock heard the scream and turned to find Nate on the ground, he felt every drop of the irradiated blood that ran through his veins go cold. Behind the fallen man stood a super mutant, a large blade clenched in his green fist. He roared as he made eye contact with the ghoul. Hancock's black eyes burned into the mutant's as he leveled his shotgun at the large beast's head. As the mutant ran forward, Hancock fired, taking a step back as the first bullet only seemed to confuse the enraged abomination. Another shot, and the mutant's head burst in an explosion of blood and bone fragments.

Hancock didn't spare a glance at the dead monster as he sprinted to the fallen man. He didn't have to be a doctor to see that the damage wasn't something that could be fixed with a stimpack or three. Nate's eyes stared up at the late afternoon sky blankly, a gaping gash across the front of his leather duster showing the whites of his ribcage through the gore.

He was long gone.

“Shit, no, w-we gotta get back to Shaun...” Hancock muttered under his breath, blinking in disbelief as he knelt over his fallen love. His hands hovered uselessly over his torn-open chest, knowing with complete certainty that there was nothing he could do.

He was dead.

Hancock stood, his jaw clenched and fists balled as he looked down at Nate's corpse. He was a few hours walk from Goodneighbor, and he knew he couldn't carry him back for any sort of proper funeral.

But there was no way in hell he was leaving him in the middle of the road. With a grunt, Hancock lifted the much taller man underneath his shoulders, half-dragging him to a copse of trees a good distance away from the road. He laid him down, closed his eyes, and crossed his hands over his eviscerated chest.

He knew how useless of a gesture that was. Mongrel dogs and scavengers would be on him as soon as Hancock turned his back. But it was something. He was about to turn away before he remembered to take his wedding rings. Let the carnivores have his body and the scavengers take his weapons, there was no way he was letting anyone take the rings.

Death was a normal occurrence in the Commonwealth, but never had a death struck so close to Hancock's heart. He never could have imagined that a fucking _super mutant_ would cut down a man as strong as Nate. It was completely unexpected, and Hancock was numb as he turned and headed back to Goodneighbor.

 

The neighborhood watch stationed by the gates of Goodneighbor watched Hancock arrive alone with wide, disbelieving eyes. None of them said a word as the ghoul passed and headed home silently. Fahrenheit, his trusted guard, stood by his door, minigun in hand and confusion evident on her face.

“Is Nate...?” Her sentence trailed off as Hancock moved past her without a word. He sat heavily on the couch, and threw his hat on the table.

“Sir,” Fahrenheit started, before he shook his head.

“I don't... Just, not right now, okay?” Hancock's jaw was tight, his words forced out through clenched teeth. With a final worried look, the guard left, closing the door behind her.

Spent Jet containers and empty Mentats boxes covered the table in front of him, his hat sitting on top of the evidence of the addiction not even Nate could cure him of.

He needed a hit of something, anything, but was too numb to do anything except stare.

 

An hour passed before Hancock heard the distinctive sound of Piper's voice heading up the stairs, the guards telling her to stop as she blatantly ignored them. The guards, admittedly, weren’t trying too hard to stop her. She wasn't a threat, and when Piper wanted to be somewhere, she managed to get there.

The ghoul looked up as Piper threw the door open, her eyes wide and hair wild under her brown newsboy cap.

“Tell me it isn't true, John Hancock, tell me this is just some bullshit rumor,” Piper said, her voice wavering as she took in the blank expression on Hancock's face.

“He can't be dead, not Blue, n-not him,” she said, stepping into the room and sitting heavily on the couch next to Hancock. “After all the shit he's been through, after all the fighting and taking down the entire damn Institute and finding his son... after all of that, he can't just _die_.” Piper shook her head, a tear managing to escape and roll down her face.

“Well, he did,” Hancock said blankly. Piper looked at him.

“Ah, Hancock... I'm sorry. Here I am crying while... I know you and him were together, I can't imagine what you're going through,” she said, putting her hand on his shoulder. Hancock shook his head.

“You were his friend, you have every right to be upset too,” Hancock said. The two sat in silence for a few minutes before Piper spoke up again.

“So... what about Shaun?” she asked.

Hancock let out a breath. “I dunno. I don't want to think of what comes next right now. I just want to... dammit, I don't know what I want to do. I just... I don't _know_ what to do.” He leaned back on the couch and closed his eyes. “I can't deal with this.”

“If you want me to, I can tell him. I'm used to talking to kids his age, I think Shaun's just a bit older than my sister, it wouldn't be hard for me to break the news to him as gently as possible,” Piper offered.

Hancock considered for a moment before shaking his head. “No. I need to tell him, the kid trusts and likes me,” he said. “He likes you too just fine of course, but I...”

“You're like his dad,” Piper finished. Hancock nodded. “I understand. I'll go with you to Sanctuary if you'd like, I know Garvey's the designated babysitter most of the time.”

“Shaun took a liking to him,” Hancock said, then sighed. “I think the kid wants to be a Minuteman one day.”

“Well, when your dad is the general of the Minutemen, I can see how it would seem glamorous,” Piper said, then winced. “Well, I guess that Preston himself is the general now.”

Hancock closed his black eyes. “Fuck this,” he growled. “He wasn't supposed to die. He was a hero, goddamned savior of the shit-hole commonwealth. He's supposed to be the general of the Minutemen, not Preston fuckin' Garvey.”

Piper sighed. “You don't mean that, Han-” she started, before Hancock stood suddenly, yanking his hat off the table and stalking towards the door.

“Like hell I don't. If we hadn't been going to check on some backwater settlement, we would never have met that fucking super mutant, and Nate would still be alive. I want to make sure he knows that.” Hancock stomped down the stairs, as Piper hurried to catch up.

“Hancock, stop. This isn't Preston's fault, you know that. It wasn't anyone's fault. Shitty things happen sometimes.”

“You of all people know that isn't true, someone is always to blame,” Hancock hissed as the opened the front doors with a bang, stepping out into the dying evening light.

“Stop, listen to me!” Piper pleaded, grabbing Hancock's arm and turning him to face her, much to his surprise. “You want to go pick a fight with Garvey because you're upset, you want to blame someone for this, but the only one at fault is the one who killed Blue. The rest is just circumstance,” she said, trying hard not to raise her voice, her deep brown eyes boring into his black ones. Hancock searched her face before yanking his arm away. Without another word, he shoved past her and went back inside, slamming the door behind him. Piper stared at the closed door for a minute before turning and heading towards the gates of Goodneighbor.

Hancock pressed his forehead against the peeling paint of the wooden door, his eyes squeezed shut. With a growl, he readjusted his tricorn hat and threw the door open.

“Piper!” he called and the reporter turned, her eyebrows raised. “Tomorrow. We'll see Shaun tomorrow, okay?”

“Alright,” Piper said with a nod, before waving and making her leave.

Tomorrow, Hancock told himself, _tomorrow_ he would be responsible.

But tonight, he was getting absolutely shitfaced.

 


	2. Chapter 2

Early the next day, Piper walked through Goodneighbor, the streets quiet as the night shift of the neighborhood watch traded positions with the day shift. She made her way to the town hall. When she ascended the stairs to Hancock's quarters, she was greeted by the gruff guard, her eyes cold as the stared Piper down.

“Hancock ain't here,” she said gruffly.

“Where is he?” she asked, not letting the woman's obvious attitude deter her. The woman only shrugged.

“Not here,” she repeated, and with that she slammed the door. Piper rolled her eyes.

“He's at The Third Rail.” another guard said, blowing a plume of cigarette smoke to the ceiling idly. “It's not a secret, Fahrenheit's just a bitch.”

“Thanks,” Piper said with a nod.

 

Hancock could barely see straight. When he looked up from his vantage point, sprawled out on the couch near Magnolia's stage, to see a very angry face above him, he had to blink a few times to be certain what he was looking at was real.

“Hey, mayor asshole. Come on, we need to get to Sanctuary,” Piper said with a frown, flicking Hancock's leg, which was draped across the back of the couch.

Hancock only stared. Piper huffed. “Did you forget what we have to do today?”

“Unfortunately, no,” Hancock said with a bitter laugh. “Nope, I still remember everything. Still remember that scream, still remember that ugly green face, still remember the blood on the concrete, still remember being able to count all of Nate's broken ribs.” Hancock's head lulled back against the cushions. “Never gonna forget.”

Piper's frown deepened. “We need to do this, putting it off isn't helping anyone. Especially Shaun,” she said gently.

“I know, I know,” Hancock sighed, standing up and stretching. He passed Piper, waved to the patrons of the bar as he made his exit, and bounded up the stairs to ground level. Piper followed behind, watching with concern as Hancock's steps weaved and he stumbled a bit.

“Are you going to be able to make it to Sanctuary, or do you need a few hours to dry out?” Piper asked, her tone slightly bitter.

Hancock sighed. “I'll be fine, everything'll wear off in a bit. Just a perk of bein' a ghoul with a high resistance. Let's go.”

Piper only nodded. The two left Goodneighbor with their weapons at the ready, Hancock's shotgun at his side and Piper's pistol in hand as the two jogged through the dilapidated streets, avoiding the raider camps and any other wandering assholes who would give them a hard time.

The sun was high by the time the two made it to Sanctuary. Hancock and Piper stood in front of the bridge, hesitating slightly before Hancock moved forward. Turrets whirred to face the two before going idle again as they crossed the broken bridge into the settlement.

Preston Garvey met the two on the road with a friendly grin, which was quickly overshadowed by worry.

“Good afternoon Piper, Mayor Hancock. It's great to see you here... on your own. You and the General are normally inseparable, Mayor,” he pointed out.

Hancock took a deep breath. “I need to talk to Shaun,” he said, brushing off Preston's comment. Preston's eyes widened.

“He's with Sturges but... where is the General?” he asked. Piper only shook her head as Hancock continued on to the house that Sturges had set up shop in.

“Shit,” Person swore under his breath. “Shit, Piper, please... please tell me the Gen- Nate is okay.” Preston nearly begged, his brown eyes wide and jaw clenched. He felt cold with fear, knowing that Nate wasn't coming back but hoping he had misinterpreted the situation.

“I'm sorry, Preston. He's...” Piper took a deep breath. Saying it out loud was harder than she could have imagined. “Nate's dead.”

Preston's jaw clenched. “We've lost a lot of good men but _Nate_... Dammit.”

 

Shaun was elbows deep in a pre-war car's engine when Hancock found him. The child grinned widely when Hancock stood next to him.

“Look, I'm helping Sturges scavenge some parts out of this car!” he said excitedly. “I might get to help build stuff too!”

“That's great, kiddo,” Hancock said quietly. With a deep breath, he put his hand on Shaun's shoulder. “I need to talk to ya, Shaun.” Shaun looked up, blinking at the ghoul with furrowed eyebrows.

“Okay,” he said. Sturges tossed Shaun a rag from inside the car to clean the grime from his hands, and Hancock led him inside the home that Nate has claimed for himself and Shaun when they weren't in Goodneighbor. Shaun hopped up on the couch, watching Hancock pace.

“Shaun,” he started, then shook his head. He sat next to Shaun and watched the boy fidget. He knew something was wrong, and Hancock's nervousness scared him.

“Where's dad?” Shaun blurted.

Hancock froze. “I... He's... dammit,” he sighed. “Shaun... Your dad died.”

Shaun's eyes widened, then quickly overflowed with tears. “No no no! He can't die, he can beat up anything, he can't die!” Shaun cried, standing and balling his fists. “You're lying!”

“I wouldn’t lie about something like this!” Hancock yelled back, then shook his head, knowing raising his voice would only upset the boy more. “I wouldn't lie about Nate dying.”

A minute passed before Shaun began sobbing, gasping and shaking as he fell forward into Hancock's arms. Hancock held the boy close and let him cry, almost wishing that he could join him in his sorrow.

But he knew he had to stay strong, it's what Nate would have wanted. The boy was alone, another orphan in a harsh world, and he needed someone to be there for him.

Hancock felt his resolve strengthen. He would raise Shaun on his own, raise him to be like Nate.

Piper and Preston walked in a few minutes later, Preston's face hidden under the brim of his hat as he sat at the table, while Piper looked at Shaun, concerned. The boy's eyes were wide and shocked, his expression blank. Hancock still sat next to him, rubbing his back in some attempt to comfort him.

“I'm gonna take him back to Goodneighbor,” Hancock said after a few minutes of silence that had only been broken by an occasional hiccuping sob from Shaun.

Preston looked up. “Are you sure that's the best idea, Mayor? I mean, no offense but Goodneighbor isn't exactly the most... wholesome place to raise a kid.”

“Wholesome it may not be, but it's a hell of a lot safer than here. We've got watchmen on-guard at all times, not to mention he'd be staying in my place, even more guards in there. He'll be safe.” Hancock said.

“But he has a home here, Nate lived here- he lived here two hundred years ago, as a matter of fact,” Preston argued. Hancock glared.

“I'm the one who's taking care of him, Garvey,” Hancock snarled. Shaun whimpered, and the three looked at him with concern.

“Let him choose, if he can,” Piper suggested.

“Alright. Shaun?” Hancock said softly. Bleary-eyed, he looked at Hancock. “Do you want to stay here in Sanctuary, or do you wanna go to Goodneighbor?” he asked.

Shaun simply pointed at Hancock. Preston sighed.

“Maybe that's for the best. He needs you around. You're his father now, Mayor, you were closer to Nate than anyone. Just make sure you take care of him. This is a lot of responsibility, in addition to keeping watch on your town,” Preston said.

“I know, Preston,” Hancock said with a nod. Preston's concern was touching. “If I need any help, I'll come to you, okay?”

Preston nodded, then glanced outside. “If you want to get back before sundown, I suggest you help Shaun gather his things. It's getting late,” he said as he stood. “I'm going to tell the others about... what happened to the General. Take care, Hancock, and you too Piper.” With that, he squared his shoulders and left.

As Shaun went to his room to get things he planned to bring along, Piper stopped Hancock in the hallway.

“Hancock... are you sure you can do this on your own? You know now that Preston is the General of the Minutemen, he can't help you as much as he seems to think he can. You might be on your own for this. And you can't just escape to The Third Rail every night. You actually need to be there for him.”

Hancock nodded. “Honestly, Piper, I'll be fine. We'll _both_ be fine. Hell, raising Shaun will probably be easier than being mayor of Goodneighbor.” With that, He slid past Piper and went into Shaun's room, helping the boy pack his things into an old suitcase.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this is good so far, I'm not used to watching Fallout fics so this is kinda new territory for me, but it is a lot of fun!

**Author's Note:**

> This kinda started as a joke, like "what if Nick and Hancock were dads?" and then a fic happened. This is my first time writing these characters in a non-crossover setting, so I hope I do them justice!  
> The fluff comes in later, I swear.  
> Comments are a great source of motivation and will help me keep this fic going~


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